


The Old Man and the City

by Androxys



Category: Batman (Comics), Batman - All Media Types, DCU
Genre: Angst, Dick Grayson is Batman, Double Drabble, Gen, I suppose?, Post-Final Crisis (DCU)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-24
Updated: 2020-09-24
Packaged: 2021-03-07 21:42:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 200
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26634547
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Androxys/pseuds/Androxys
Summary: Batman called him “Jim” and now Batman calls him “Commissioner.”Or, Dick has taken up the cowl after Bruce's death, and everyone's still adjusting.
Kudos: 40





	The Old Man and the City

Jim tries to tell himself that the city is the same. He stands on the roof of the GCPD, shaky hands lighting a once sworn off cigarette. A tiny flame flares brilliantly for a second, for years, before it disappears. Mere smoke trails away from him. Jim doesn’t think about the cataclysm, because that acknowledges that sometimes God can remake a city overnight. He doesn’t hear him arrive, and that’s good, because he never hears him, but then he says  
“Commissioner” in a voice that’s familiar and wrong and honestly the heart attack was easier than this, even though it feels so similar. Because Batman called him “Jim” and now Batman calls him “Commissioner.”

“Harley Quinn is up to something at the WGTU Tower,” Gordon says. “I’ve got the building surrounded, but she might just need some de-escalation.” She may just be having trouble adjusting, he doesn’t say. Jim looks out over the skyline, and he doesn’t turn around, because despite the noiseless boots and silent grapple gun and Batman’s own branded reticence, Jim knows he’s still there. He wishes he wasn’t. If Batman could just disappear before Jim turned around, one last time, maybe they wouldn't feel so alone.

**Author's Note:**

> I've never written to a word count before, and originally this was supposed to be a drabble, but I'm wordy so here we are. I've also never written angst before, and I hesitate to really call this angst, but I don't suppose it's exactly happy, either. Anyway. Here it is. As always, I can be found on tumblr as Androxys.


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